In a new study, researchers found that adherence to the Mediterranean diet—high in vegetables, whole grains, fish, and olive oil—correlates with higher cognitive function.
Thy analyzed data from two major eye disease studies and found dietary factors also may play a role in slowing cognitive decline.
The research was conducted by a team at the National Eye Institute (NEI), part of the National Institutes of Health,
The team examined the effects of 9 components of the Mediterranean diet on cognition.
The diet emphasizes the consumption of whole fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, legumes, fish, and olive oil, as well as reduced eating of red meat and alcohol.
The data assessed over the years the effect of vitamins on age-related macular degeneration (AMD), which damages the light-sensitive retina.
The study tested participants’ cognitive function regularly. The researchers assessed diet with a questionnaire that asked participants their average consumption of each Mediterranean diet component over the previous year.
They found participants with the highest adherence to the Mediterranean diet had the lowest risk of cognitive impairment.
High fish and vegetable consumption appeared to have the greatest protective effect. At 10 years, participants with the highest fish consumption had the slowest rate of cognitive decline.
The numerical differences in cognitive function scores between participants with the highest versus lowest adherence to a Mediterranean diet were relatively small, meaning that individuals likely won’t see a difference in daily function.
But at a population level, the effects clearly show that cognition and neural health depend on diet.
The researchers also found that participants with the ApoE gene, which puts them at high risk for Alzheimer’s disease, on average had lower cognitive function scores and a greater decline than those without the gene.
The benefits of close adherence to a Mediterranean diet were similar for people with and without the ApoE gene, meaning that the effects of diet on cognition are independent of genetic risk for Alzheimer’s disease.
The lead author of the study is Emily Chew, M.D., the director of the NEI Division of Epidemiology and Clinical Applications.
The study is published in the journal Alzheimer’s and Dementia.
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